Considering how little civic knowledge most kids leave high school with, it would seem to be a wonderful thing when grade school reading curriculum incorporates the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States — at least until you look more closely.

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Published by Teacher Created Materials (TCM), the Building Fluency Through Practice and Performance series includes reading activities meant to be regularly read, reread, and performed by students. The stated goal of these interactive exercises is to improve word recognition, fluency, comprehension and interpretation.

One troubling section titled "The Promise of America" turns the Preamble into a five-page choral project. Students chant various lines assigned to their group, including sentences meant to aid interpretation. Note what the children are to chant after the phrase "promote the general welfare":

We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense,
promote the general welfare . . .

R7: People's basic needs must be met in a country.

R5: Needs for housing, education, transportation, and health care are overseen by our government system.

R6: Labor laws ensure that people work in safe environments and that they are paid fairly for the work that they do.

According to this curriculum, the promise of America and the intent of the Founding Fathers who wrote the Constitution is . . . socialism? The last time we checked, neither the Preamble nor the Constitution tasked the government with providing housing, education, transportation or health care for citizens. Continuing where the above quote of the Preamble left off, the Founders did intend to "secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity," which is the explicit reason they "ordain[ed] and establish[ed] this Constitution for the United States of America."

According to Mike Opelka of The Blaze website, neither TCM, their printing company Shell Education, nor sales outlet Sussman Sales could provide data on how many schools are using the "Promise of America;" however, one company rep told The Blaze that the fluency program is "really popular." Is your child's school using this subtly indoctrinating curriculum? (theblaze.com, 3-2-11)

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